Access & Attainment at DePaul

Main Content

DePaul is distinctive among private, selective universities for its mission-based commitment to student access and outcomes. It is a commitment that is embodied in the university's partnership and pre-college programs, in its transition and first-year programming, in its culture and teaching, and in the day-to-day work of staff and faculty across campus.

It is a commitment, by extension, that finds concrete expression in its enrollment mix, retention and graduation rates.

Access to higher education means little without real attainment. Against national trends, DePaul's retention and graduation rates have improved steadily over the past two decades. Additionally, the graduation rates for first-generation students, low-income students and students from Chicago Public Schools track very closely with overall institutional rates.

The six-year graduation rate at DePaul is 70.5 percent.

The six-year graduation rate gap among racial/ethnic groups has closed to a ten percentage point difference between the highest and lowest groups.

There has been a sharp increase in the six-year graduation rate for African-American males, up from 45 percent for those entering in 2004 to 68 percent for those entering in 2008.

The latest six-year graduation rate for low-income and first-generation students in the TRIO Student Support Services program is 82 percent.

Graduation rates for students enrolled in the TRIO McNair Scholars program is close to 100 percent. More than 80 percent of McNair graduates go on to graduate school.